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Articles Posted in Personal Injury

The personal injury attorneys at The Collins Law Firm are representing a passenger injured in the recent CTA train crash in Chicago and preparing to file a case against the Chicago Transit Authority.

Chicago-CTA-1-300x244CTA Train Crash Sends 23 Passengers to the Hospital

The CTA train crash—which occurred when a Yellow Line train struck a CTA snow plow train doing scheduled training in the Howard rail yard– injured 38 people and was the largest train crash in decades. This tragic and unexpected crash sent 23 people to the hospital, including three in serious condition. Commuter train crashes like this are relatively rare, but when they do happen, they can injure or kill dozens of passengers. After a crash like the one in Chicago, the injured victims will need an experienced train accident attorney to safeguard their legal rights.

Gun-violence-protest-300x225A new bill has passed the Illinois General Assembly that will help make it easier for victims of gun violence to receive justice, and to protect Illinois residents before they experience the horrifying consequences of gun violence themselves. Both the Illinois House of Representatives and Senate have passed the Bill, and Governor J.B. Pritzker only needs to add his signature for the Bill to officially become law. Pritzker has already confirmed his intention to do so.

House Bill 218, also referred to as the Firearm Industry Responsibility Act, aims to open gun manufacturers to civil lawsuits from the Illinois Attorney General and citizens of Illinois for marketing their products fraudulently or deceptively. The law specifically outlaws gun advertising, manufacture, or sale that encourages illegal paramilitary activity or targets children under 18.

Illinois’ Firearm Industry Responsibility Act intends to define the limits of the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PCLAA) passed by the Bush Administration in 2005, which has been wrongfully used by the National Rifle Association (NRA) and lawmaking groups as a means of sheltering gun manufactures from any legal accountability or consequence when their guns are used for criminal activity.

Taking an evening stroll should not cause you to fear for your life, but the sad reality is that this scenario is becoming more common, as pedestrian accidents become a growing safety issue in the U. S. The fact that these accidents tend to result in more serious, life-threatening injuries and fatalities than other kinds of car accidents, combined with the fact that they have risen significantly in recent years, is extremely concerning.Pedestrian-accident-1024x683

Pedestrian Deaths Are on the Rise

 Between 2010 and 2019, pedestrian deaths increased a shocking 45% in the U.S.,  with 53,435 pedestrians being hit and killed by vehicles. The last four recorded years, 2016 through 2019, were the deadliest years on record, with more than 6,000 people killed in each of those years. That breaks out to more than 16 deaths a day, which is unacceptably high.

Blog-photo-Pool-300x200Summer is just around the corner, and with the new season comes beautiful weather, swimming, boating, summer sports, recreation, and unfortunately but inevitably, accidents. From swimming pool accidents to sports injuries, summer is full of activities that can cause injuries. It is important to be aware of these hazards if you want to keep yourself and your loved ones safe this summer.

Common Types of Accidents During the Summer Months

 Certain accidents occur more commonly during the summer than at other times of the year. Here are some eye-opening statistics on the most common summer accidents.

winter-sport-1024x683Winter is upon us; bringing with it lots of holiday spirit, warm drinks, and outdoor sports. As fun as skiing, snowboarding, and snowmobiling may be, these activities can be extremely dangerous for both beginners and those who are more advanced. When people are properly trained and are using safe practices, winter sports injuries are fairly easy to prevent. However, sometimes an accident is caused by another person’s behavior. If you are injured in an accident that is the fault of another skier or snowboarder, you may be able to sue them for negligence or recklessness and recover compensation for your injuries. Our experienced personal injury lawyers can help you through this stressful and often painful time and fight for your rights in the legal system.

During the 2017-2018 winter season in the United States, 14,000 injuries and 37 fatalities occurred in connection with skiing or snowboarding. These accidents can happen in several ways, but typically they are caused by skiing too fast in heavily populated areas, not giving another person their right of way, or stalling in areas that are designated trails. The severity of the resulting injuries can range from broken bones to brain injury, and even death.

With snowmobiling, approximately 200 deaths and 14,000 injuries occur each year. Considering that a snowmobile typically weighs around 500 pounds and can travel at a maximum speed of 200 miles per hour; these numbers are not surprising. These accidents usually happen due to intoxication, untrained drivers, poor judgment, exorbitant speed, or vehicle defects. If you are injured in a snowmobiling accident due to someone else’s fault, you may have a personal injury claim. In the saddest scenario, if your loved one is killed in one of these accidents, your family may have a wrongful death claim.

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A few years back one of my daughters got her finger seriously mangled in a slammed door. The nail was loose and her finger was bleeding profusely. So, my wife rushed her to the immediate care center near our house. After waiting for a half-hour, they were ushered in to see a doctor who wrapped our daughter’s finger in a gauze bandage and told my wife to call an orthopedic doctor. That was it.

The next day, fortunately, they were able to squeeze into an orthopedic doctor’s schedule, who stitched our daughter’s nail back on, took an x-ray (the finger was fractured), and wrapped her finger up in gauze and vet tape. Not only was the visit to the urgent care clinic a waste of time and money, but it delayed any actual treatment for our very anxious daughter.

Now, I’m not suggesting that this is what always happens at urgent care clinics, but it does raise the question: what should you do if your child gets injured in an accident this summer, the busiest trauma season of the year?

FireworksFourth of July typically means barbecues, picnics, parades, and fireworks, but every year amateur fireworks do more than just entertain. According to the National Fire Protection Association, they cause thousands of serious injuries and fires every year. In fact, in recent years, fireworks have been one of the leading causes of injuries serious enough to require a trip to the hospital, resulting in 12,900 emergency room visits in 2017 alone.

Fireworks can result in severe burns, fractures, scars, loss of vision, disfigurement, and even death. In addition, fireworks-related fires are responsible for an average of $43,000,000 in property loss annually, with many of these fires involving bottle rockets or other fireworks rockets. Even sparklers can reach temperatures of 1000 degrees or more.

Unfortunately, our personal injury attorneys at The Collins Law Firm see the results of the careless use of fireworks. We recently settled a case for a woman who suffered burns and a serious head injury when she was hit by a neighbor’s bottle rocket, an accident that could easily have been avoided.

kids-at-swing-1185902_1920.jpgAs summer approaches and children finish school it’s important to check your yard to make sure that it is free from serious hazards that could injure children. Some of the most common backyard hazards include playsets, zip-lines, trampolines, and fire pits. These quick steps will help you make sure that your backyard is safe and fun for the summer:

1. Survey your yard for safety hazards 2. Check play structures like playsets, treehouses, zip-lines, and trampolines for wear and tear, if they look unsafe, they probably are. 3. Use caution when grilling or having bonfires. Flames can spread quickly and cause serious injuries. 4. Always supervise children playing or hanging out in the backyard to make sure they are safe. 5. Never start a fire without an adult present. 6. Use all play equipment properly – don’t stand on swings, jump off of trampolines, or jump out of trees. 7. Make sure that all play structures have proper safety equipment and instructions on how to properly use the structure.

Safe and fun backyards will make your summer more enjoyable. If you or a loved one have been injured as a result of a dangerous condition in a backyard or at someone’s home, the attorneys at The Collins Law Firm have experiencing helping victims just like you. Contact us today to learn how we can help.

The Collins Law Firm would like to congratulate founder and partner, Shawn Collins, for being nominated for a Lifetime Achievement honor as one of America’s Top 100 Attorneys for Illinois. Less than one-half percent of attorneys in the United States will receive this prestigious award. Shawn will join an elite list of nationally recognized lawyers from around the country, which includes many current and former presidents of major bar associations and attorney groups, and some of the best lawyers in Illinois. Only 100 attorneys in a state can hold the lifetime achievement award, and they are selected through a rigorous process.

Candidates for membership as one of America’s Top 100 Attorneys are initially nominated by elite peers or identified through third-party research. Nominees must then pass through a multi-phase screening process that includes more third party research and complex analysis that includes an attorney’s lifetime legal achievements, professional experience, case results and verdicts, peer reputation, client satisfaction, other honors and community impact, before being selected.

Shawn is honored to be included among the elite lawyers who have accepted a lifetime Achievement honor as one of America’s Top 100 Attorneys. As Shawn says: “My selection as a Top 100 Attorney is a great honor, of course, but one that must be shared with my wife and daughters, law partners, associates, and staff, as nothing I have accomplished as a lawyer would have been possible without their support and professionalism.”

lady-justice-2388500_1920.jpgChoosing a lawyer when you or your business have been injured by another individual or company can feel like driving a car in a new city without GPS. You don’t know where to turn or what to look for. It can feel almost impossible, especially if you don’t know any lawyers. Many people ask friends or business acquaintances for recommendations, which can be a good start. Others turn to the internet to begin a confusing and daunting search. Either way, the consequences of choosing the wrong lawyer can be catastrophic. So, what do you need to know? What qualifications are you looking for? How do you know who to trust? How do you know the lawyers are good at their job? Here are some important things you need to consider when looking for the right lawyer to represent you.

Does the lawyer have experience? To be precise, this question should be worded: Does the lawyer have the right kind of experience? Look on the law firm website. Do they list your type of problem on their practice area page? What areas of the law are emphasized? Do they have a page that covers the issues involved with your kind of case? Do the lawyers’ profiles talk about working on your kind of case? This is important. The law is very complicated and it isn’t possible for a single lawyer to be able to handle every type of case well. Most lawyers concentrate in specific areas of the law. If a lawyer does mainly banking, for example, then she may not be the right choice for a personal injury case, and vice versa. If you have an environmental case, you will need an environmental lawyer. If you have a business litigation problem, choose a business litigation lawyer, and so on. In addition, check out whether the lawyer is a defense lawyer or a plaintiffs’ lawyer. And finally, ask the lawyer directly if he or she has experience handling your kind of case.

What kind of qualifications does the lawyer have? Start with his or her education. Research the law school he or she attended. Is it well regarded? Does the lawyer have other relevant education? An accounting degree, for example, can be very useful if you have a case with lots of business financials involved. Has the lawyer taught law school; written books, articles, or blogs on a certain area of the law; or created videos on specific legal topics? All of these things help to prove that a lawyer is qualified to handle your case.

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